Do I really need a prep course?

cbloom19

I have been "just about to start" my LSAT prep for way too long now. I am a 2015 graduate with a full-time paralegal job and I first intended to study during college and take the June 2015. Bought Blueprint and never used it (senior thesis was too time consuming). Blueprint expired and I didn't renew. Then, December was the goal, but I didn't start prep and decided February would be better. I still haven't started and I'm worried that now I should take June, but I don't want to keep this cycle going. When I get home from work and my 1.5hr commute each day, I just don't feel motivated to study.

Part of what's holding me back is that I bought Blueprint and didn't use it, so I'm afraid of buying another course now and then having the same thing happen. My diagnostic was 153, with -16 LG, -8 RC and -5/6 LR. It is obvious that LG needs the most work. I feel comfortable with the type of thinking that LR and RC require, and I honestly feel that PTs will really help me in those areas, but the fact of the matter is, I have no LG competency right now, and in order to make PTs worth my time (and to avoid wasting them), I need to learn how to do LGs. I would like to score above 165.

I'm left with the question of whether I really need to spend money on a course (if I do, I think it will be 7Sage), or if the PowerScore Logic Games Bible can teach me what I need to know to start doing PTs. If I do 7Sage, is the Ultimate really necessary? Maybe a few meetings with a tutor would do it? Honestly, I'm lost, and some guidance would be very helpful.

Pacifico

Grab the 7Sage starter pack (if you don't care about not having the explanations for newer PTs) and The LSAT Trainer. That will set you back less than $250 so you can spend the rest on PTs and testing materials. Go through them one after the other and then start PTing. You shouldn't really need a tutor until you're in the PT phase, though everyone is different. Some people want a sherpa for the whole time and that's cool, there are those of us out there that do that, while some tutors aren't super into that. But if your diagnostic is in the 150s and it was your LG that sucks that bad then JY's videos should get you where you need to be to start off. Definitely beware of any tutors that offer to teach you everything you need to know. That would easily cost you more than the price of the Ultimate+ package, even if you went with one of the low cost 7Sage tutors. JY has set up a course that anyone can start from square one and go at their own pace until they improve through hard work and dedication. Don't pay a tutor to just parrot that stuff to you for way more money. Most of us like to deal with higher level or back end help anyways once you have a good foundation, so you'll have a better experience with a tutor if you already know a little bit of what you should be doing and we just help to solidify your skills and illustrate a lot of the larger patterns and dynamics at work, which can help take you to another level.

@Allagash19 said:
Part of what's holding me back is that I bought Blueprint and didn't use it, so I'm afraid of buying another course now and then having the same thing happen.

Consider this a blessing because you won't have many bad habits to break. Don't buy a course until you're ready to commit to it, which it sounds like you have issues with, but if you really want to be a lawyer then sooner or later it will be time to buckle down and get after it. You should take June at the very earliest, with September and December to fall back on, but I'd seek out a better life situation than working full time with 90 minutes of commuting if that's really crushing your motivation that badly. Or just know that it will take more than a year to get it right if you can't devote much time at all and you need to keep doing what you're doing. Good luck!

nicole.hopkins

@Allagash19 said:
senior thesis was too time consuming

Did you go to a certain Halloween-themed University??

cbloom19

Thanks for that. I'm looking at the Starter or the Premium (although Premium would expire before June). I see what you mean about the tutors and agree it's probably better to wait. Also, I want to try to find a way to use this long commute to my advantage and actually study while I sit on the train. The videos might use too much data but bringing some practice LGs with me would be a good use of that time.

Nope, no Halloween-themed university. Where I went it's not actually called a "thesis" but it's close enough.

nicole.hopkins

@Allagash19 said:
PowerScore Logic Games Bible can teach me what I need to know to start doing PTs.

Blah Powerscore.

Here's a thought.

Go get The LSAT Trainer. Use one of the study schedules on @mike 's site (http://www.lsattrainer.com ). Take a few PT's at the end and see if you still need more. At that point you can purchase 7sage if you still need more help/fine-tuning.

cbloom19

@nicole.hopkins said:
Go get The LSAT Trainer. Use one of the study schedules on @mike 's site (http://www.lsattrainer.com ). Take a few PT's at the end and see if you still need more. At that point you can purchase 7sage if you still need more help/fine-tuning.

Not to doubt you at all, but what is better about The LSAT Trainer than the PowerScore Bible? I've just seen so many testimonials around the various LSAT forums that commend the PS Bible. Also, I've heard that the Trainer doesn't use real old LSAT questions. Is that really a problem?

nicole.hopkins

@Allagash19 said:
Also, I've heard that the Trainer doesn't use real old LSAT questions.

The Trainer EXCLUSIVELY uses real LSAT questions.

Powerscore is convoluted and overly complicated.

fishtwentyfive

@Allagash19
I did not pay for a course. My diagnostic was a 157. I scored a 168 after 9 weeks of studying. I scored a 176 a few months after that. Logic games was also my worst section initially. I learned how to do logic games 100% from the free videos posted on 7sage. I took around 30+ practice tests. You can definitely get to where you want without a course, but you have to be pretty darn serious about what you want. I studied 8 hours a day for 5 days a week the month leading up to my first take and didn't come even close to my target score. But still I'm just here to say that you can definitely do it without a course. But I guess I should add that I got perfect scores in a couple of the logic courses which they offer at my university, so I didn't have to learn any of that from the ground up. That's why I was able to learn to do logic games just from watching the vids, because I had a very solid grounding in logic.

Pacifico

@Allagash19 said:
long commute to my advantage and actually study while I sit on the train.

Train? You should've said so. That changes things entirely. My first suggestion would've been audiobooks for RC topic familiarization if you were driving. Since you're on the train you can pretty easily do logic games to kill time. Just fool proof them on the train and you'll be killing it pretty quickly. Since your LG was garbage on your diagnostic (as is the case with most unicorns like @fishtwentyfive above) then you can make some pretty amazing strides in a short span of time versus people that suck across the board. Of course you still have plenty of ground to make up in the other sections, but just maxing out LG will likely get you into the upper side of the mid 160s. If you have no grounding in logic whatsoever I'd get a course or a book. 50 bucks on the Trainer may be all you'll ever need, but lugging it around might get annoying on the train, though if you don't have unlimited data then 7Sage videos won't be much use there either. Bring a clipboard or something similar and just do every game you can, then use home time for working on your LR.

nicole.hopkins

@Pacifico said:
50 bucks on the Trainer may be all you'll ever need, but lugging it around might get annoying on the train

Haha--it ain't heavy, it's The Trainer!

cbloom19

@Pacifico said:
Since you're on the train you can pretty easily do logic games to kill time. Just fool proof them on the train and you'll be killing it pretty quickly.

Wow, thank you for your advice thus far. This is very helpful. Not to get too specific, but say I buy the Trainer (I'm ordering it today), I start a close read to really learn the material, then I start fool-proofing LGs on the train. Do I need to worry about running out of logic games by June, and is the best way to get them just to order a bunch of PTs and "extract" their logic games?

I don't mind lugging the Trainer with me if it is really that good of a book. I'm very intrigued by the possibility of this $50 book really having the ability to teach me what I need to know so that I can actually start doing PTs.

nicole.hopkins

@Allagash19 said:
o I need to worry about running out of logic games by June, and is the best way to get them just to order a bunch of PTs and "extract" their logic games?

No ! Just retake retake retake ... you will be a LG ninja.

nicole.hopkins

@Allagash19 said:
it is really that good of a book

Oh. It is. It's the only one I recommend without reservation.

nicole.hopkins

@Allagash19 said:
I'm very intrigued by the possibility of this $50 book really having the ability to teach me what I need to know so that I can actually start doing PTs

It certainly did for me.

cbloom19

@nicole.hopkins said:
No ! Just retake retake retake ... you will be a LG ninja.

Ok, so running out is not a concern. But to practice LGs the only way is to buy the PTs in their entirety right? Or am I missing something?

nicole.hopkins

@Allagash19 said:
But to practice LGs the only way is to buy the PTs in their entirety right? Or am I missing something?

Yeah you'll want all the PT's. Back when I was working out of the 10 Actuals books all the time, I would have the book with me and do the LG on a separate sheet of paper. So my diagram/rules/boards/answers for each Q would be on the separate sheet. Thus no need to erase.

Pacifico

If Cambridge still has PDFs just snag those before it is too late.

nicole.hopkins

@Pacifico said:
If Cambridge still has PDFs just snag those before it is too late.

Please do this ... they still have them!

cbloom19

@nicole.hopkins said:
Please do this ... they still have them!

On it. Wow, they even warn of the impending unavailability of their downloads. Don't think I'm going to spring for the complete 1-70 set, but will go for something close. This is a no-brainer because regardless of whether I take a course, I'll need the preptests. Do people usually take 5 section preptests? Cambridge offers both 4 section and 5 section options (and 6, it seems).

nicole.hopkins

@Allagash19 said:
Do people usually take 5 section preptests?

Yeah dude but you can always make your own by adding a random 5th section.

cbloom19

Wow, the Cambridge downloads are expensive. I feel pretty strongly about taking 5 section exams, and those plus the sets of drilling problems will set me back more than $400. I guess it's probably worth it.

Pacifico

Since it can mean the difference between acceptance and rejection, or sticker versus scholarships then yes it is worth it.

Nilesh S

A prep course is not necessary (or for that matter sufficient) to do well on the LSAT... That said, being risk averse, I would get one... and that being the case, 7 sage is a really good course to get... better than many in the market and it will likely help you develop and get comfortable with the tools you need to do well on the LSAT. The Ultimate + course is a great bargain... and worth it imo and ito of many others here. Beyond that every man (or woman) picks his or her poison. all the best with your decision.

cbloom19

@"Nilesh S" said:
That said, being risk averse, I would get one... and that being the case, 7 sage is a really good course to get... better than many in the market and it will likely help you develop and get comfortable with the tools you need to do well on the LSAT.

Thanks for that. I have decided that I will start with the Trainer and if I don't feel I'm making the progress I need, I'll go with a 7Sage course.

nicole.hopkins

@Allagash19 said:
I have decided that I will start with the Trainer and if I don't feel I'm making the progress I need, I'll go with a 7Sage course.

Great plan on all counts! Feel free to PM me if you need help or just post in the forums

cbloom19

@nicole.hopkins said:
Great plan on all counts! Feel free to PM me if you need help or just post in the forums

Thank you so much!